Hi Ladies! (And gentlemen if they are some I haven't seen yet!)

I don't cook. AT ALL! I have issues with touching raw meat so I can't do anything involving cooking meat either. I'm looking for some tips on things to eat that are already prepared.

Thanks SO much for your help!

Not to bum you out, but this is a very hard plan to stick to if you don't like to cook or aren't willing to cook. My sister had the exact same problem and she decided that maybe she needs to try a plan like Jenny Craig, where the meals are already prepared for you. I can't imagine doing SouthBeach and not cooking because there are not a whole lot of packaged or prepared foods that are allowed on this plan.

Hhmmm, well absolutely no cooking at all? or just minimal cooking?


You can buy the prepackaged salad mixes and cut up vegetables at the salad bar if your grocery store has a salad bar.

Canned beans are easy, just need to heat them in a microwave. The dairy stuff, cottage cheese, ricotta cheese and other low fat or fat free cheeses, and milk. Nuts and peanut butter.

I think you can buy frozen pre-cooked chicken breast, but you would have to check the ingredients to make sure they didn't sneak in some sugars or other bad things. Also in the freezer section are all the frozen vegetables. Just pop in the microwave and eat.

I actually don't cook either, and I've been surviving, although spending a lot of money!
I think I'm going to start cooking, since I'm spending so much.

I will boil water! So I make hard boiled eggs for breakfast.
For lunch and dinner, I've been getting Greek Salads, Grilled Fish salads, omelets, egg scrambles, Grilled Chicken salads. I just ask the lunch counters/restauants to hold the bread or any other carbs added. You can get this food at almost any diner, lunch counter. The only problem is that I don't know if they're putting sugar in the salad dressing or if they're using regular fat cheese or low fat cheese.

But I feel great, and its working so far! Lost 9 lbs in the first week! I probably will start cooking though, since its a pretty expensive diet to maintain eating out.

I have to agree with Wendy- because SB is so not about processed foods, I think it would be really tough to not cook. I have never cooked as much in my life as I have these last two months.

Thanks for the responses so far! I really don't want to get discouraged because of the cooking issue! I'm gonna try to keep veggies and lettuce on hand for salads and good cheeses and nuts. I'll get creative

But any other tips would be great!

I guess it's do-able, but will be hard to maintain over time if you don't cook cause that's the only way I see to really get a variety of foods that you like.

Just wanted to reiterate that you CAN do it. I've done it without cooking for 2 weeks now, and I am losing! You can order the kind of dishes you need (main course salads), as I said before at a lot of places. I've done it for two weeks, and its working.
Only caveat is that its expensive!

Thanks Sfgirl! I appreciate your help! I'm gonna take your advice and go the salad route. I know that it will be expensive and I've accepted it Thanks!

No problem LegallyBlonde! Good luck! You can also order any grilled fish with steamed veggies or grilled chicken with steamed veggies. I've also been ordering omelettes with veggies and cheese (hold the potatoes!) and egg scrambles (made with cheese and veggies!).

I would die without my snacks though- low-fat cottage cheese, sugar free jello, and low-fat laughing cow cheese.

Let me know how it goes!

SFGirl -- I hate to burst your bubble on this, but can say with great confidence that unless otherwise stated, restaurants/lunch counters ALWAYS use full-fat cheeses and salad dressings with sugar. Why do you think restaurant foods taste so good?

You need to make sure to ask at the counter/restaurant, if it's regular cheese. While you're doing awesome so far (9 pounds is great!), it's going to impede your weight loss later. Plus, in the Good Carbs, Good Fat book, it says that full-fat cheese should be "avoided". Meaning, there is stuff in there that's not good for you in your quest to get thinner.

Good luck! You're clearly doing well, but this will only help!

LegallyB -- just as I mentioned to SFGirl, you really have to ask questions if you're going to order out a lot of food. Almost all restaurant salad dressings contain sugar, even if they're home-made. But especially if they're pre-made. Plus, they don't usually use good oils like Olive or Canola. You're often going to see them using bad vegetable oils with a lot of trans-fats.

So, when you go, make sure to ask tons of questions. Is there sugar in the dressing? Is it olive or canola oil based? As for chicken... make SURE to ask if it's breaded and/or deep fried. I made that mistake a few weeks ago. I ordered a salad with chicken, and it turned out to be chicken FINGERS, and the whole thing was drenched in dressing. Learned my lesson!

Hi Leagallyblond...

I would recommend joining the SBD website. It's only $5 a week (and you can call and talk to a nutritionist whenever you want... it's a good deal) they have whole sections for people that don't or can't cook, I'll post some of it here (I'll understand if the mods want to move it) But to have access to the recipes and stuff you should join... It's worth the $65 that you have to pay (you pay in advance) for the short cook or no cook recipes. Also... I don't know where you live in Los Angeles but if you're anywhere near the Follow Your Heart resturant/market you might look into getting things from them, and I belive that there are many organic freezer dinners that would make it onto plan.

Anyway... here are some of the tips from the SBD website (and I'll post a few recipes in the recipe section):

In a rush? Here are tips you can use to make nearly any South Beach Diet™ meal quick:

* When a recipe calls for spinach or salad greens, use prewashed, bagged varieties.
* Instead of mincing garlic by hand, throw whole cloves into the food processor. Refrigerate any leftovers in a plastic sandwich bag and use within one week. Jarred minced garlic can also be purchased at the grocery store.
* For the fastest chicken dinner, pick up a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store or deli. Ask the butcher to carve it for you, or even to debone the breast. One whole chicken can usually feed two to four people. Buy one for dinner and another one for a few days of lunches. Pick chickens with firm, smooth skin. (Wrinkled skin means old, dry chicken.)
* In many recipes, you can use dried herbs in place of fresh. Taste will be sacrificed somewhat, so you should stick with fresh if it's a major component of the recipe. Otherwise, substitute about 1 teaspoon of dried herbs for each tablespoon fresh.
* When you have some downtime, boil eggs to use as snacks or on salads during the week. Unpeeled boiled eggs can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week.
* Cut a piece of fresh Parmesan off a block and grind it with the chopping blade of your food processor to the consistency you enjoy. Both the ground Parmesan and the block can be stored in plastic containers in the refrigerator, where they'll keep fresh for months, possibly up to one year. To keep the block from drying out, wrap it in a moist paper towel.
* Firmer vegetables, like green beans and broccoli, also freeze well. In recipes that call for these types of vegetables, feel free to use frozen varieties.
* Food processors or vegetable choppers can cut your veggie prep time down significantly.



FAST FOOD GUIDE:

Just because you're on the South Beach Diet™ doesn't mean that you can't hit the drive-thru and feast on fast food every now and again. You just need to be careful about which foods you choose. In general, steer clear of white sandwich bread and buns, sugar-filled condiments like ketchup, and items cooked in bad fats, like French fries. Here's a look at some of the healthier food choices when eating on the go.

Wendy's™

Meat Items:

* Grilled Chicken Fillet—toss the bun. All other ingredients are permitted (lettuce, mayonnaise, mustard, onion, dill pickles, and tomato slice).
* Chili—may combine a small chili with a side salad as a meal. Both the shredded cheese and chili seasoning are permitted.

Garden Sensation® Salads:

* Caesar Side Salad—toss the bacon pieces and the home-style garlic croutons. All other ingredients are permitted (romaine, parmesan cheese, and Caesar dressing).
* Side Salad—all ingredients are permitted (iceberg and romaine lettuce, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, red onions, and carrots).
* Chicken BLT—do not use the honey mustard dressing, bacon pieces, or garlic croutons. All other ingredients are permitted (iceberg lettuce, romaine, spring salad mix, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, cheddar cheese, and diced chicken).
* Spring Mix Salad—do not use the honey roasted pecans; request the roasted almonds instead. Do not use the house vinaigrette dressing. All other ingredients are permitted (iceberg and romaine lettuce, spring salad mix, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, red onions, carrots, and cheddar cheese).
* Spinach Chicken Salad—do not use the bacon, croutons, and sweet and bacon salad dressing. All other ingredients are permitted (spinach, chicken, romaine, grape tomatoes, and eggs).

Salad Dressings:

* Blue cheese
* Creamy ranch
* Reduced fat, creamy ranch
* Caesar

Back to Top

Boston Market™

Meat Items:

* 1/4 white meat chicken, no skin or wing
* Skinless Rotisserie Turkey Breast
* Marinated Grilled Chicken

Veggies:

* Green Beans
* Steamed Vegetable Medley

Salads:

* Caesar Side Salad—toss the croutons.
* Caesar Salad Entrée—toss the croutons and eat as main dish.
* Chunky Chicken Salad—eat as main dish.

Desserts:

* Seasonal fresh fruit—refer to fruit listed for Phase 2.

Back to Top

Burger King™

* BK Veggie Burger Sandwich—toss the bun (and no ketchup). May eat with regular or low-fat mayonnaise, tomato slices, pickle slices, onion, and lettuce. Note: This is NOT a vegan product.
* Chicken WHOPPER Sandwich—toss the bun. May eat with regular or low-fat mayonnaise, tomato slices, pickle slices, and lettuce.
* Chicken Whopper JR Sandwich—toss the bun. May eat with regular or low-fat mayonnaise, tomato slices, pickle slices, and lettuce.
* Chili
* Chicken Caesar Salad—no croutons.
* Side Garden Salad
* Santa Fe Fire Grilled Chicken Baguette—toss the baguette.
* Grilled Chicken Caesar Club Baguette—toss the bun and bacon.
* Sourdough Breakfast Sandwich—enjoy 1/2 of the sourdough bun. May order with egg, ham, and cheese. No sausage or bacon!

Sauces and Salad Dressings:

* Mayonnaise
* Reduced-fat mayonnaise
* Ranch dipping sauce
* Kraft Ranch Salad Dressing
* Signature Creamy Caesar Salad Dressing

Back to Top

Subway®

Salads:

* Ham
* Roast Beef
* Turkey Breast
* Roasted Chicken Breast
* Turkey Breast & Ham
* Veggie Delite®
* Subway Club®
* Tuna
* Subway Seafood & Crab®

Condiments & Vegetables:

* Vinegar
* Mustard
* Light Mayonnaise
* Olive Oil Blend
* Lettuce
* Tomato
* Onions
* Cucumbers
* Jalapeno Peppers
* Banana Peppers

Breakfast Foods:

* Cheese & Egg Omelet
* Ham & Egg Omelet
* Vegetable & Egg Omelet

Atkins®-Friendly Wraps:

* Enjoy the wrap in Phase 2, but choose fillings that are South Beach Diet™-friendly. (Be sure to check the amount of saturated fat so you don't overdo it.) You can use the lists of foods above as a guide.

Back to Top

Hardee's®

Breakfast Items (Order Individual Sides):

* Breakfast Ham
* Country Ham
* Scrambled Egg
* Folded Egg

Lunch and Dinner Selections: Currently nothing SBD-friendly

* The chicken in the Charbroiled Chicken Sandwich contains brown sugar
* The Roast Beef Sandwich selections have a whirl on them. A whirl is made from partially hydrogenated soybean oil.

Back to Top

McDonald's™
Sandwiches:

* Chicken McGrill®—toss the bun.

Salads:

* Grilled Chicken Bacon Ranch—toss the bacon bits.
* Bacon Ranch Salad (without chicken)—toss the bacon bits.
* Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad
* Caesar Salad (without chicken)
* Grilled Chicken California Cobb—toss the bacon bits.
* California Cobb (without chicken)—toss the bacon bits.
* Side Salad—toss the croutons.

Salad Dressings:

* Newman's Own® Creamy Caesar Salad Dressing—use ½ package.
* Newman's Own® Light Balsamic Vinaigrette
* Newman's Own® Ranch Dressing—use 1/2 package.
* Light Mayonnaise

Breakfast Foods:

* The egg and Canadian bacon (found on the Egg McMuffin®) are allowed from the sandwich items.
* The Spanish Egg omelet without the bagel and sausage is allowed.
* Scrambled eggs

Beverages:

* Diet sodas
* Unsweetened iced tea
* 1 percent low-fat milk

Back to Top

In-N-Out Burger

* Not SBD-friendly except for the diet soda

Back to Top

Sonic

* Grilled Chicken Breast Sandwich—toss the bun and order without the honey mustard dressing
* Toaster Sandwich—order the ham, egg and cheese and toss the Texas toast
* Grilled Chicken Wrap—toss the actual flour wrap and ask for the dressing on the side

Back to Top

Back Yard Burgers

* Savory Chicken Sandwich—toss the bun
* Blackened Chicken Sandwich—toss the bun
* Garden Veggie Sandwich (made with a Gardenburger®)—toss the bun
* Garden Fresh Salad
* Charbroiled Chicken Salad
* Blackened Chicken Salad
* SBD-friendly salad dressings: Ranch and fat-free Italian (only 3 grams of sugar per package)

Back to Top

Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC)®

* Original Recipe® chicken breast with skin removed
* Green Beans

I couldn't find a recipe just like that to post... but there are lots of vegetarian recipes that would save you from touching meat... The rotissiere chickent at costco (if you have a membership) is delish and cheap... just discard the skin (I know... it's hard! YOU CAN DO IT!).

Thanks for the information MittenNKim! I know you're right about the full-fat cheese and sugar dressing at restaurants.
However, so far I feel great and I'm losing. I'm sure the weight loss will stall soon, (maybe even this week), and when it does it will be a good excuse to become more familiar with my kitchen! It'll be good for me, I know.